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A crew of six scientists have returned to earth after spending eight months living on 'MARS'.

The six ‘astronauts’ have been living and working in a 1,000sq ft dome in the harsh and remote slopes of a dormant volcano in Hawaii since October.

They were taking part in HI-SEAS (Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation), a Nasa-funded experiment to simulate what a manned expedition to the Red Planet might be like.

On the rare occasions when they went outside, crew members had to first request approval from ‘Ground Control’ and wear spacesuits while exploring the volcano’s Mars-like landscape.

Explore: A crewmember goes walkabout

Their health and personal relationships were monitored by experts to see what issues may arise on a real Mars mission.

One of the participants is Purdue University student Jocelyn Dunn. She admits she is glad to be back on ‘earth’, but admits she will miss the intimacy she has built up with her fellow scientists.

Surface: One of the scientists steps outside (Photo: Hi-Seas.org)

She said: "We have a lovely and productive arrangement. There's a solace in certainty. I guess I got a taste of marriage.

"We have given each other loyalty and commitment, through the good and the bad, we belong to the crew. We give it our best and forget the rest."

The sky at night: Darkness on Mars (Photo: Hi-seas.org)

They were only allowed to eat the same dried food as astronauts and all communications were on a 20 minute delay to simulate the delay in transmission as a result of the vast distance between earth and Mars.

They were only allowed to use a solar-powered treadmill on sunny days and showering was restriced to just six minutes a week to conserve precious water.

Broadcast: The crew sends a video message

Hawaii University professor Kim Binsted is the principal investigator for HI-SEAS.

She told PBS: "The site is very geologically similar to a young Mars.

"There’s no signs of human life, there’s no signs of animal life, very little plant or insect life.”

The dome includes common areas such as kitchen, dining, bathroom with shower, lab, exercise, and work spaces.

To boldly go: The Mars mission patch

Professor Binstead added: "Even when you choose very low drama people - and we’re not a reality show - problems will arise.

"So what we’re looking for is not a way to eliminate all problems from happening but a way to choose people and to train people so that they know how to respond to conflict and can do that in a really resilient way."